Should government run their primary schools in English in a bid to arrest closure of schools imparted in regional languages like Konkani and Marathi? This issue dominated the meeting of Congress legislature party (CLP) held here on Thursday. Calangute MLA Agnelo Fernandes, advocated the need to start government primary schools in English as a solution to the crisis-type situation being faced by the schools. He said several schools are on the verge of closure because parents want their children to be educated in English-medium schools.
Secondly, he also suggested that the government must release grants to English-medium private schools. Fernandes was supported by Curtorim MLA Reginaldo Lourenco who also demanded that government should re-think its policy on medium of instructions and grant in-aid to primary schools, sources said. However, there was no unanimity as PWD Minister Churchill Alemao and Cortalim MLA Mauvin Godinho disagreed with the suggestions. They were of the view that some other solution has to be thought of to prevent closure of government primary schools.
Just because most parents want their children to study in English medium, government primary schools shouldn’t be in the same medium, they argued adding that the medium of instructions should be in Konkani or other regional language. Chief Minister Digambar Kamat said he would take up the matter with educationalists before any decision is taken.
-Herald
